NOTE: Each week there will be staples that you always buy, such as eggs, vegetables, fruit; when buying meats for dinners, be sure to buy and cook extra so that you always have leftovers for lunch the next day (planning and cooking to intentionally have leftovers is called a vital behavior, which is defined as“an action step which leads directly to a desired outcome”; in this case, the desired outcome is to eat a healthy and affordable lunch). You don’t/won’t need to buy everything on this list, particularly with regards to seasonal fruits and vegetables, spices and meats. Buy what you can, buy what you like (no, that doesn’t mean donuts, ice cream and pizza), and ingredients for the recipes that interest you.

HEALTH TIP:Whenever walking into a whole food store, first stop at juice bar and order 1-2 oz. of wheatgrass juice and/or a “green” vegetable juice drink; drink (wheatgrass juice first) as you shop in the store.

THE EGG AND CHOLESTEROL MYTH:Fresh organic free-range eggs are a great source of many valuable natural nutrients including protein, and cholesterol, which is an essential building block for the body.Eating eggs does notelevate one’s cholesterol (not to mention that cholesterol does NOT cause atherosclerosis or clogging of the arteries – that is also a myth). Also, egg yolks contain biotin which the liver uses to metabolize cholesterol in the production of many critical hormones. Eat eggs, and eat them often.

NON-STICK COOKWARE IS TOXICNon-stick cookware leaches dangerous cancer-causing chemicals such as Teflon into your food – STOP USING NON-STICK! Use heavy duty stainless cookware. Shopping Tip: Looking for decent stainless steel cookware? I’ve bought great skillets, sauce pans and stockpots at Marshall’s, TJ Maxx or Ross. You may not find a full set, but you can pick up random piece of quality heavy stainless cookware for much less than at stores such as Macy’s or Williams Sonoma. – Dr. Paul